this is the world through my eyes

Post navigation

Okay…maybe I will regret writing this post if Juan Pablo and Nikki don’t even make it a month together. But I am so annoyed right now that I really wanted to share my thoughts.

There have been countless angry people posting on social media about The Bachelor finale, which aired last night. Juan Pablo is being called a womanizer, sleaze ball, asshole, and those are some of the more kind names I’ve seen.

Aside from an apparent inappropriate and disrespectful sexual comment Juan Pablo made to the runner-up on their last date, everyone seems to be most angry about the fact that he didn’t end up proposing to Nikki in the end. He did give her a rose, though… the “final rose”, and did not even come close to proposing. He hasn’t told her he loves her yet, even though she told him she loved him a while ago. He gave vague and abrupt answers to Chris Harrison’s questions about where they will live, if he truly loves Nikki, etc. People are absolutely outraged. They feel ripped off because it went against everything The Bachelor represents – a magical, fairytale-like proposal at the end of six weeks of filming where the couple eventually has a live television wedding and they live happily ever after.

This is EXACTLY where I see the problem. Why would we want Juan Pablo to propose to some poor girl if he isn’t ready, just for good TV and to make the viewers happy? Why is Chris Harrison trying to force Juan Pablo to say he loves Nikki on live television, if he isn’t ready? Why are we trying to find out where the two of them are going to live, eat, sleep, breathe, when the media has been obsessed with following Juan Pablo around and making him look like a horrible person?

I could NEVER do a show like The Bachelor or The Bachelorette. I can’t imagine trying to date so many different guys at one time and expect to have meaningful and deep relationships with them. I can’t imagine having cameras around me at all times while trying to be my authentic self. I can’t imagine being able to say “yes” to a proposal after six weeks and only a few dates with a guy…especially knowing that he made his decision to choose me over another girl the night before, an hour before, maybe even just moments before I arrived for the proposal.

You know what I CAN imagine? Being able to say “yes” to DATING someone after six weeks of trying to get to know them with a bunch of other girls and camera men and producers and lights and media around me. Even that might be a stretch, seeing as the whole process just seems so extremely unnatural. So unnatural.

I understand that Juan Pablo agreed to be on television for the whole world to watch this process. But who are we to say that he didn’t regret his decision once he was in it? Maybe he didn’t know exactly how hard it would be. He has a young daughter, and wants to protect her from the media and the craziness of paparazzi and tabloids. He also wants to make sure he is making the right decision for his family and himself before asking a girl to marry him. He not only promised himself that, but he also promised Nikki’s dad – that he would be 100% sure when he proposed. He’s keeping his word, is he not? Isn’t that an admirable quality?

I can understand that it’s sad to see Nikki say she loves him and that he isn’t able to say it back. BUT! Six weeks isn’t that long of a time! My boyfriend said he loved me pretty early on in our relationship…but being able to promise me marriage is a completely different thing. It has taken him almost 4 years to be confident that he could ask me in the near future. Not because there is anything wrong with our relationship (we are extremely happy together and I wouldn’t change a thing), but because marriage is a serious thing. It’s supposed to last a lifetime, you know.

So chill out, everyone. Let the poor man figure out his own feelings and maybe we should trust Nikki when she says she’s happy with the way their relationship is. I’ve been ready to marry my boyfriend pretty much since the day we started dating, but that doesn’t mean it was instant for him. And that also doesn’t mean that he was ever disrespecting me in any way. Decisions like that SHOULD take time and careful consideration. And I loved him enough, was patient enough, and believed in our relationship enough to give him that time.

Maybe we should all take a step back and remember what healthy relationships are about. Aren’t they about honesty? Being genuine? Sharing your fears and doubts? Keeping things private that should stay between two people? Protecting those we love?

Oh, and one final note. Why is everyone so happy for Clare screaming at him in those final moments when he decided to send her home? There is ALWAYS SOMEONE WHO GOES HOME. And you know what else? I’m pretty sure every other Bachelor has led both two final girls along and made them believe that he would pick them. In fact, I think they’ve all had a hard time making that decision in their final moments before the proposal. Clare also knew what she was getting into when she signed up for the show, and that there was a possibility for heartbreak. I understand that he may have said something to her that was degrading, but do we really know that? I didn’t really trust Clare from the start because she never quite seemed genuine. Just sayin’. And everyone really needs to give their heads a shake and stop believing every single thing the media throws in our faces. It’s sad…we should remember that the people on TV aren’t characters in a story…they’re real people, too. They’re just edited and written about and portrayed as characters to make YOU talk about them.

This will probably make some people mad…but I really could care less. You know why? Because eeete’s okaaaaay.

As my studies come to a close, I have realized that I am most interested in preparing Public Relations campaigns for companies, whether it is for awareness, a new product launch, crises, or issues. I enjoy the creative aspect of PR and find personal satisfaction in coming up with strategies, tactics, and key messages.

I think my career will be informed by my new Public Relations knowledge because I have learned SO much about just communication in general. I just started managing a social media account and have already come across moments where my PR knowledge has come in handy when posting content and responding to comments appropriately. I also find my writing has improved quite a bit and I’ve gotten better at being clear, concise, and effective.

As much as I’ve enjoyed learning about Public Relations and earning my diploma, I’ve realized that my personality is probably a better fit for the marketing industry. My last two jobs dealt with some serious stuff (bankruptcies and child protection), which gave me a sense of fulfillment, but also a feeling of misery when I would come home. Dealing with other people’s serious issues every day at work weighed down on me because I tend to take things on personally. So, right now my goal is to not work somewhere that will make me feel sad every day. I feel that a Public Relations job is more structured and serious than a marketing job would be and may be more likely to be a job that leaves me feeling weighed down at the end of the day. PR involves a lot of problem solving that is nowhere near stress-free. The marketing industry is much more creative and more shallow, for lack of better words. I wouldn’t mind working somewhere that allows me to come up with marketing concepts for a makeup company, clothing brand, etc. Somewhere fun! It will still be hard work, but it wouldn’t involve seeing people at their weakest moments anymore or doing major damage control.

Don’t get me wrong though…I am NOT closing any doors! I am open to any /all opportunities and maybe my dream PR job is actually out there. Or maybe my dream marketing job will present itself to me. I have no idea what my future holds or what path I will end up taking, but I am excited to see where the next year takes me!

BlendTec’s “Will It Blend” campaign is one of the greatest things I have ever seen. I’m not sure why it has taken me so long to know about the campaign because it went beyond viral (shame on me), but I am so glad my instructor showed it to our class yesterday. If you haven’t seen one of their “Will It Blend” YouTube videos, watch this one now. I promise…it will make your day.

This campaign captured my interest because the concept of it was SO simple, yet SO effective. It’s so fun and made me laugh until I almost cried. I love that BlendTec’s CEO (Tom Dickson) is the star of the videos. It completely humanizes the company. I love that they allow their customers to interact with them by suggesting things to blend. I can’t think of anything funnier than blending random, inedible objects. I love that it shows how effective their product really is and proves the quality of the $400 blender. And to top it all off, this campaign boosted sales by more than 700% since the campaign started!!

How did it start? In 2006, BlendTec was a relatively unknown company and wanted to boost their brand awareness. The team bought a white lab coat, marbles, garden rake, McDonalds meal, rotisserie chicken, and Coca-Cola. Filmed in the company’s lunchroom, Dickson blended up these items. After five days of the videos being uploaded to YouTube, there were over six million views! They have been viewed over 100 million times since then.

The company also has a “Will It Blend” website, YouTube channel, Facebook page, and Twitter account.

From a PR perspective, I learned that it is possible to create an enormously effective campaign on a very minimal budget. As we spoke about in class, sometimes the most simple ideas are the best ideas. Often times, people get caught up in doing a campaign that is over-the-top and extravagant. That is not necessarily the best approach. People want to be engaged, and these videos did just that. They gave their audience exactly what they needed to be excited about the company and excited to go out and buy one of their blenders!

For this week’s blog post, we were asked to read the article called “Was Occupy Wallstreet a PR Failure?”. Furthermore, we were asked to share our thoughts on the management of the movement and what we think supporters need to do to continue to push their message and to make sure that their message actually leads to real political action, regardless of our personal political views.

From a PR perspective, I feel that Occupy Wall Street is a PR failure.

The management of the Occupy movement is lacking. They are not sending a clear message for starters. There also isn’t an obvious leader for the group and their credibility just doesn’t seem to show.

From a public-image perspective, OWS should partnership with organizations that share the same values as their movement. This will gain them credibility in the eyes of the public. This will give them more of a budget. This will make their message clearer, and will allow their message to be broadcasted in a broader, more focused way. They should also assign someone who can be a spokesperson for the movement who will be able to confidently answer any questions that the media (or anyone else) would have about the movement.

Obviously, this all sounds good in theory. But (here’s the kicker)…the whole philosophy behind OWS is to be leaderless. They want to be people-powered in order to make their point. Even the OWS website clearly states:

“Occupy Wall Street is a leaderless resistance movement with people of many colors, genders and political persuasions. The one thing we all have in common is that We Are The 99% that will no longer tolerate the greed and corruption of the 1%. We are using the revolutionary Arab Spring tactic to achieve our ends and encourage the use of nonviolence to maximize the safety of all participants.

The only solution is a world revolution.”

That being said… maybe the whole thing isn’t a PR failure at all? Looks like they might be doing exactly what they want to be doing. I might have to take back what I said about it being a failure because from what I can tell, the PR aspect of their movement is irrelevant. From the perspective of the supporters, they are doing something that transcends public image or the public’s opinion. They believe that they are starting a revolution in a quiet, leaderless way, and will most likely never appoint a leader or join up with organizations. But let’s be honest. These tactics will most likely never lead to real political action.

I am once again required to comment on PR-related blogs in the next few weeks. I will be posting my comments on here, continually updating this post each time I’ve written a new comment. Feel free to read and comment on these posts!

“This article makes me a happy girl. I didn’t realize how many big, influencing brands decided to show their support for marriage equality on their social media and I LOVE IT (I may have a strong opinion on the subject). Some might say it’s a brave stance, seeing as some of their customers may have been supporters of DOMA, and therefore may no longer be loyal to these brands. But these companies obviously don’t care. They’re showing support proudly in big, flying, rainbow colors! This could obviously work in these companies’ favour too…same-sex marriage supporters will WANT to shop at these brands more than ever. It could definitely increase their customer base. Maybe they’re trying to cash-in on this moment in history, but who cares? I don’t, and would love to one day work for a company that would proudly do the same thing. It gives me warm, fuzzy feelings inside and more hope for the future.”

This was very insightful for me. I am currently in school for Public Relations and the number one rule we’ve been taught when it comes to managing an organization’s social media is to NEVER ever delete any comments. I always questioned this logic because I felt that there would always be times when deleting comments should definitely be appropriate. I think it would be unfair for a social media manager to reply to every single negative comment out there, especially if these comments fall under any of the five things you mentioned. Also, I’m glad you mentioned that your rules should be outlined in a company’s community guideline. This keeps everyone on track if you have more than one social media manager and it’s a good way to cover your butt! I will hopefully be managing the social media for a new cross fit gym soon and I’m sure I will run into some of these issues, so again, thanks!”

“This article was exactly what I needed to read today, so thank you for that! I recently started managing a social media account and was feeling overwhelmed with it this weekend. I just felt like I have so much to learn about it still and that it’s probably going to be quite a learning journey to figure out what is going to work best for this new company social-media wise! We’ve learned a little bit about managing social media in my program, but not enough for me to feel like I’m anywhere near an expert. That being said, it was nice to see an article about keeping calm when the stress of managing social media accounts can get to you. I also appreciated when you said to maintain your own voice. I needed to be reminded of that! I definitely feel like I can stay sane and savvy with your tips!”

“WHAT?! IS THIS REAL? I don’t care whether this was a sanctioned document or not, these things should never be said. I can’t believe someone actually created this document and presented it as training material in some form. How did that ever get past the higher ups? I can’t imagine being a Hispanic employee at Target and seeing/hearing those words. I would be utterly mortified and furious. I also can’t believe Snyder’s apology wasn’t more APOLOGETIC. She apologized for offending team members and said Target does not tolerate any form of racism or discrimination, but then why does this document exist AT ALL in the first place? Disgusting. This is a PR issue, but it is foremost a major HR issue. Someone should lose their job over this, and it shouldn’t have been the three Hispanic men. I thought Target was better than this.”

What has made you change your opinion of a public figure, organization or brand? Please give one example.

Does anyone remember Mike Jeffries? That loser CEO made me realize that I never wanted to buy Abercrombie & Fitch…EVER. Even though he’s since apologized, I will never step foot into one of his stores again after what he said.

Jeffries was stupid enough to say this:

“In every school there are the cool and popular kids, and then there are the not-so-cool kids. Candidly, we go after the cool kids. We go after the attractive all-American kid with a great attitude and a lot of friends. A lot of people don’t belong [in our clothes], and they can’t belong. Are we exclusionary? Absolutely. Those companies that are in trouble are trying to target everybody: young, old, fat, skinny. But then you become totally vanilla. You don’t alienate anybody, but you don’t excite anybody, either.”

Disgusting. He only wants cool people to shop at his stores. Has he ever looked in the mirror? This is the best part of the whole thing. He looks like Gary Busey gone very wrong, if you can even imagine that.

What factors have influenced your decision to do or not do something. Please give one example.

It took me a LONG time to decide what to go to school for. I had dabbled in early childhood education, interior decorating, and human resources, but nothing ever seemed like the right fit. Public relations and marketing continued to come up as options, but for some reason I never felt like I would be good at either.

It wasn’t until I was at a crossroads in my life, and a friend’s encouraging words in December 2011, that I finally decided to go for it. I was working full-time at an organization with some great people, doing great things, but I never felt like it was where I should be. I wasn’t doing the work I felt like I was capable of doing, and it was making me miserable. I would come home and cry almost every night and I felt lost. I wondered if this was what life would always be like. Would I always be stuck in jobs that I didn’t like, for the sake of making money to survive? These thoughts were beyond depressing. I knew I needed to make a change. Then I went to one of my boyfriend’s family gatherings at Christmas time in 2011. His cousin’s girlfriend was there, who I hit it off with from the day we met. She started telling me about the school program she was in and really thought I would be a good fit for it. Little did she know that I was having a personal crisis and needed to find direction. The more she told me about this PR and marketing program, the more I knew I needed to take it. She 100% persuaded me to do it. And here I am now…30 school days away from graduation!

What has made you think differently about an issue. Please give one example.

I would have told you a week ago that I’d love to go to the Calgary Stampede one day because it looks like such a good ol’ fashioned, wholesome time. After last Tuesday’s class, I would say that I feel completely different about it. We did a case-study about the animal-cruelty PR issues that the Stampede deals with and it broke my heart.

I found out that many horses die at the Stampede, whether it’s from heart attacks due to the stress they are put under to race, or from being put down due to injuries. These poor horses are being forced under stress just to entertain the public. It’s a money-grab, and these horses are dying because of it. It made me so sad. I almost cried, in fact. That’s how I know something really bothers me. And I made the decision to never go to the Calgary Stampede because of it.

My Public Relations Fundamentals course is almost over. This Thursday is our final class. I’ve learned many things throughout this class, but I will touch on three key learnings that I have taken away from it as well as how working on the Canadian Museum for Human Rights project has informed my learnings of the PR process.

Key Learnings:

1) Never underestimate the power of research.

I touched on this a couple of weeks ago in a different blog post, but research is the utmost important thing to do before beginning a campaign. I am always so eager to jump into the strategy and tactics because it’s the “fun part” of the campaign, but doing research first ensures that I am on the right track. Research provides major insights and ways to make sure that the effectiveness of the campaign is on-point with the target audience and that the message is delivered clearly.

I’ve learned throughout our project for the Canadian Museum for Human Rights that research is not always fun. It’s time consuming, sometimes frustrating, and sometimes unhelpful. But the only way to really gain some valuable insights is to GET OUT THERE and not give up. Ask people on the street, ask people you know. ASK, ASK, ASK! I am so bad for just googling for research. While this may bring some valuable information to the table, there is nothing more valuable than first-hand information from people who your campaign will directly affect.

2) Social media is a science.

Before even starting this program, I thought that I was a social media wizard. I’ve come to learn that I am definitely not one. It’s not as easy as it looks. There are many things to take into consideration when using social media for PR (or marketing). Not anyone can just be a “social media expert”, although many consider themselves to be just that. Successful social media is strategic and follows the RACE process. Social media marketing needs to be fully integrated with the PR/marketing plan and clear objectives should always be laid out ahead of time.

3) Teamwork is hard, but necessary.

This has been a lesson that I’ve been learning throughout the past ten or so months. We’ve encountered many (MANY) group projects throughout this program and they have been nothing short of exhausting and frustrating. I’ve learned that group work is difficult for many reasons, whether it be personality conflicts or a lack of motivation from certain members, but I’ve also learned that it is absolutely necessary. I’ve chosen a career path that will most likely involve a lot of teamwork, and I may not like or get along with the people I will work with. But that’s LIFE. I just need to suck it up, move on, and get done what needs to be done. The best way to make teamwork bearable is to try to remain calm and positive, and practice clear communication as often as possible.

CMHR Project

The CMHR project has taught me a few VERY important things:

ALWAYS BE PREPARED FOR A PRESENTATION.

Usually your presentation or pitch is your one shot to impress. Be prepared, bring notes, and dress professionally. Don’t forget to smile, be confident, and be excited about what you are presenting!

ALWAYS BE PREPARED FOR AN INITIAL CLIENT MEETING.

Come up with intelligent questions before meeting with a client. If the client has already sent you information to look over, read it, research it, and make sure to not ask questions that were already answered in the information.

RESEARCH, RESEARCH, RESEARCH.

Scroll above for more information on this. I can’t stress enough how important it is, even though it can be annoying at times.

BE PATIENT, EVEN WHEN NOTHING SEEMS TO BE GOING RIGHT.

There will always be bumps in the road. Don’t give up. Keep your eyes on the prize and the final goal. If you stay patient and positive, good things are bound to come your way eventually.

CLEARLY COMMUNICATE WITH TEAM MEMBERS.

The easiest way to get along (or at least be civil) is to communicate clearly with team members. Give as much input as you can. Be constructive. Most importantly, be patient with each other.

BE PREPARED TO START FROM SCRATCH…POSSIBLY SEVERAL TIMES!

Even though you may think you’ve come up with the best idea in the world, your client, boss, etc. might HATE IT. Don’t take it personally. Take a big, deep breath. Go back to the drawing board and try again. You’ll eventually come up with something even better.

I did an interview with my cousin (and friend), Lindsay Wright, about her public relations career and a campaign that she is most proud of. Lindsay has been in the industry for thirteen years. Since 2009, she has been a freelance writer and communications strategist.

Unfortunately, our schedules didn’t match up very well this week, so we ended up doing the interview over email. Although this was a very informal way of interviewing (and not the way I would prefer to do it), she was extremely understanding! So, thanks again Lindsay, for your insightful answers and accommodating attitude!

Me: What made you decide that PR was the career for you?

Lindsay: To be honest, I’d say that I stumbled on PR by accident… While I was in university (doing a BA in English and planning to become a high school teacher), I took a summer job at an advertising agency and was asked to help out on a PR campaign for a client working on a big Habitat for Humanity sponsorship. I’d really been enjoying the work in advertising and was already starting to wonder if that might be a better career path for me than teaching. This campaign was outside the agency’s area of expertise, so they brought in a senior PR professional to work on the project and I became her assistant for the summer. I had never really been exposed to PR as a career option before – and I loved it right away. The combination of writing and planning and working with people and constantly being challenged by moving pieces and variables was FUN. I can remember working ridiculous hours that summer, and hardly being able to sleep at night because I was so excited about what I’d be working on the next day. After my English degree, I enrolled immediately in a PR diploma program – and I was given the opportunity to stay at that agency and work on all PR-related projects. I’ve been in the industry ever since and I still get that can’t-sleep feeling sometimes when I’m working on a project. I think that’s a pretty good sign that you’ve found a career that’s a good fit!

Me: Please describe a successful & tactical PR project that you have worked on that you are especially proud of.

Lindsay: A few summers ago, I got a panicked call from a client of mine asking if I could take on a last-minute project. He’d been asked by a friend to help a group of small local potato farmers to organize their message and put pressure on the government to change new regulations that were quietly coming into effect – regulations that would suddenly make it illegal for them to sell potatoes at farmer’s markets, to local grocery stores and restaurants, or even at a roadside stand on their own farms. These regulations were put into place by a large producer co-op and they would mean the end for many of these small producers who’d been farming potatoes for generations.

It was so last-minute that I went to the meeting that night by myself – and walked into a room for 80+ angry farmers and other people who were upset by what was happening. By the end of the evening, everyone had had their say and we’d managed to decide on a few key representatives who would lead the charge. More importantly, I knew what we’d need to do to help them.

Working together with a team from Cocoon Branding (now ClarkHuot), we put together the fastest campaign I’ve ever worked on in my life. They put together some really impressive creative while I set up a blog, sent out media releases, drafted backgrounders, did some media training bootcamp for the people who’d be doing interviews on behalf of this coalition. Our goal was to gain media coverage and begin to put pressure on the Manitoba government and Peak of the Market leading up to an important meeting that aimed to have these new regulations reversed.

The news coverage was both instant and extensive. We were all over television, newspapers, and news websites – with the public squarely on our side. The creative was installed on billboards and in transit shelters… And the next day, our group met with the government and Peak of the Market – who agreed to re-write the exemptions for small potato growers, with the consultation of our group.

The entire campaign – from our first meeting to their last – lasted less than three weeks.

Me: Why are you most proud of this project?

Lindsay: I loved the challenge of figuring out how to make Manitobans aware – and make them CARE – about something they’d probably never even thought about before.

And obviously, the quick and tangible result of the campaign made it really special. We work on so many things that are a drop in a bucket and we hope that they help someone – but we can’t always be sure. This project meant everything to the farmers I met. And being able to deliver a positive outcome for them – an outcome that kept them in business – felt amazing.

Me: What is one piece of advice that you can give when it comes to taking on tactical PR projects, for someone like me who is just starting out in the PR world?

Lindsay: Just one?! 🙂

You’ll get stuck working on ‘boring’ projects sometimes – but there’s ALWAYS an interesting angle, and it’s your job to find it. Your work is always important to someone, and there’s always an audience that will care deeply about it. Once you tap into that, it will make YOU care – and that’s when you’ll do your best work.

Me: What keeps you excited and passionate about doing what you do?

Lindsay: I love the fact that every day is different. It’s impossible to work in PR and be bored (unless you’re boring). Those moving pieces and variables keep it interesting. And the tools we use change so rapidly – especially with social media and the internet. I’m not that old, but I’ve spent WEEKS of my life standing in front of a fax machine sending out news releases… I’m sure that I’ll see even more significant changes before I retire. But once you understand strategy and what makes a good campaign, you can learn to use any tool to help get you there.

Lindsay’s successful campaign for local potato farmers won many awards as well (for obvious reasons). Take a look at the images below to see some of the work they did!

I am required to comment on PR-related blogs three times in the next few weeks. I will be posting my comments on here, continually updating this post each time I’ve written a new comment. Feel free to read and comment on these posts!

Comment #1

The article I commented on was called “Common Excuses for Crappy Social Media Marketing” and can be found here.

“First of all, I love your writing style. I really enjoyed this article! You’re funny and to the point.

Second, I agree with @theSarawr. There should always be a balance between interacting with people and simultaneously making sales. Social media can build relationships, brand loyalty, etc…if you do it right, of course. Those relationships and loyalty can then in turn generate sales! Most consumers these days are constantly connected to social media. Social media gives us as marketers, PR professionals, etc. a chance to research and analyze what is going on in the brains and lives of the people we want to reach the most. The information is now so accessible! It’s not only an interactive relationship-building platform…it’s also a way to be strategic in marketing and sales techniques. The two go hand in hand. And I think both departments should always work together in order to have the most impact.”

Comment #2

The article I commented on was called “Lululemon’s Sheer Brilliance In Yoga Pants Debacle” and can be found here.

“I had just started my diploma program in PR when Lululemon first came out with their statement on the see-through luon pants. It was one of my first true realizations of how important PR really is. I’m sure many customers were outraged (can you imagine doing the downward dog and finding out that every yogi behind you could see your bum?), but they managed to save themselves. I feel like many retailers wouldn’t send out a statement like that. A lot of retailers just recall the product without explanation or being transparent. It shows how much Lululemon cares about their customers. This smart PR move definitely helped them to restore their reputation of quality apparel. Thankfully, they’ve proved that with the new pants that have been tested and are definitely not see-through. Thank god because not only do I love Lululemon’s yoga pants, but you’ll also catch me in some interesting yoga poses from time to time!”

Comment #3

The article I commented on was called “8 Guidelines for a Great Blog” and can be found here.

“Good article…thanks for the tips!

Blogging has become a new passion for me ever since we were required to make our own blog in a course I finished a few months ago. As much as I love to write posts on my own agenda, it’s difficult to do sometimes when I’m required to write one as an assignment. It’s hard to write naturally when I can’t pick the topic or the deadline. It becomes writing just to write and get a mark. It was interesting to me when you said to let your post sit a few days before pushing “publish”. There have been times when I’ve published a post as an assignment just to get it done, and I felt sick after about it because it didn’t feel like ME. It’s made me appreciate the feeling of blogging for the sole reason of loving to write.”

I am required to write a few blog posts as part of a Public Relations course I am currently in. Each week I will be commenting on something PR-related. Feel free to read and comment on my posts as usual!

This week I will be talking about how important it is not to immediately jump to tactical ideas for a campaign when taking on a new PR project and how important research is as your first step.

A PR campaign needs to be well researched in order for it to be successful. So many of us “right-brained people” automatically want to blurt out a million tactical ideas for a project. It’s in our nature. We’re innately creative and sometimes we just can’t hold back all of our brilliant ideas. This isn’t a bad thing! But jumping too far ahead with these ideas can cause problems in the long run.

If a campaign isn’t researched, then some unfortunate things could possibly happen. Maybe you’ve chosen the wrong target audience. Maybe your message isn’t clear to who you thought your target audience is. Maybe your message will be completely misunderstood. Maybe the campaign won’t even make sense to anyone! Sometimes an idea seems like a great idea at the time, but when released to the real world, you might find out it’s the exact opposite!

We’ve all grown up with biases and different influences around us. We form opinions based on experiences and the people who surround us, affect us, and inspire us. This proves that everyone has a different perspective on EVERYTHING. Our brains interpret words, visuals, sounds and messages differently than the next person beside us. Depending on our age, sex, income, location, religion, political beliefs, etc, we will “get” certain things, and sometimes we will not get certain things.

Once you have done your research, understand your target audience, have a clear understanding of current events and related attitudes around what you are trying to campaign for, you will be able to make educated decisions on what your strategies, objectives, and tactics will be for your campaign. This will ensure that all aspects of your campaign connect and come back to the true message of what you are trying to accomplish and who you are trying to reach. This will help you to (hopefully) avoid a campaign flop. You don’t want your campaign to end up like these unfortunate failures.

This is a very short explanation of why research is so important. I could talk for days about why it is so important, but here is the bottom line of what I have been trying to say:

Get inside the heads of your target audience. Try to see things from their perspective. Assume how they will react to certain things. Find out what will pull at their heart strings or encourage them to action, whatever is is you are trying to accomplish. View current attitudes, reactions, and opinions on related subject matter to your campaign. Look everywhere you can to gain a clear understanding of how your campaign may be interpreted.

Although it’s not fool proof (because we all know that shit happens sometimes), this is what research is all about and it should always, always, always be your first step in developing a PR campaign.